“Women shall derive benefit from what they acquired. Ask, therefore, God out of His bounty: behold, God has indeed full knowledge of everything.”(Qur’an 4:32)
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Does The Christian Heaven Have a Place For Women?
I was recently thinking sincerely about this very issue. It seems that Christianity is a bit ambiguous over who ‘the elect are‘. Many people will say that Jesus died for ‘all‘. However, Calvinist are usually quick to point out that this is not the case. Jesus only died for a few ‘elect‘ whom they believe God capriciously has chosen before the foundations of the world.
With that said, texts in the New Testament that tend to generalize salvation, or promises of heaven to all can no longer be taken at face value or for granted.
The very sad thing one quickly realizes about Christian concepts of God, as well as Christian concepts of salvation, is that they are all very male-oriented and male-dominated.
Now it is possible that one may say well what about the women in John’s vision found in the book of Revelation?
We have two “women” in John’s Vision. Neither of these can be taken to be real, actual women. One of them is a whore (false church) and the other is a whore (Israel) that found redemption.
“A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head.” (Revelation 12:1)
What can be immediately seen from this text is that it is symbolism and nothing literal about it.
In fact, the word for ‘heaven‘ is ‘ouranoj‘.
The word can mean the sky, the air, the vaulted expanse of the sky. You will note that this woman is wearing various heavenly bodies like the sun, the moon under her feet and she is wearing a crown of 12 stars.
You will also note the symbolism in the following passage:
“The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.”(Revelation 12:6)
You have to wonder why this “woman” would need to flee into the wilderness to be taken care of if “she” was already in heaven.
Many commentators say that this symbolic “woman” is actually Israel herself. The same Israel that God likened to an adulterous prostitute spoken about in the Bible when God said the following about her:
If this symbolic woman is Israel, Israel too has been likened to a whore:
“But you trusted in your beauty and used your fame to become a prostitute.”(Ezekiel 16:15)
“You adulterous wife! You prefer strangers to your own husband!”(Ezekiel 16:32)
However, this prostitute and adulterous wife, Israel finally gets to wear a crown of glory in the following passage:
“Then, when I make atonement for you for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed and never again open your mouth because of your humiliation, declares the Sovereign Lord.” (Ezekiel 16:63)
So there is no woman in heaven at all. What is relayed is a vision of glorified Israel that God has forgiven for its past adultery and prostitution.
The other “woman” mentioned is a whore who has not found redemption.
“One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters. With her, the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”
Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet and was glittering with gold, precious stones, and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. The name written on her forehead was a mystery: Babylon the great the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth. I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus.” (Revelation 17:1-6)
So neither of these provide us examples of actual women. It is symbolism.
For example, within the Trinity itself, God’s self-love is only expressed in an eternal relationship of Masculine self-love. God -The Father, who loves God The Son. God -the Holy Spirit is a conduit of this love.
It is an eternal bond of masculine self-love
Now it is interesting within the Trinity there is no concept of Feminine self-love expressed anywhere. There is no Mother and no Daughter in the Trinity.
How unfortunate that the concept of God dwelling in a community of eternal self-love includes only manifestations of the masculine.
In Islamic theology the very word that is used to describe the essence of Allah (swt) is the Arabic word ‘dhat‘ and surprise surprise, it is a feminine word.
“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come”.(John 16:13)
The Holy Spirit is expressed here in terms of the masculine.
What about heaven is there a place for Christian women?
Do keep in mind that there are some very negative sentiments towards women in general in the Bible.
“I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a trap and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God will escape her, but the sinner she will ensnare….while I was still searching but not finding, I found one upright man among a thousand but not one upright woman among them all” (Ecclesiastes 7:26-28).
“No wickedness comes anywhere near the wickedness of a woman…..Sin began with a woman and thanks to her we all must die” (Ecclesiastes 25:19,24).
St. Tertullian is reported to have said,
“Do you not know that you are each an Eve? The sentence of God on this sex of yours lives in this age: the guilt must of necessity live too. You are the Devil’s gateway: You are the unsealer of the forbidden tree: You are the first deserter of the divine law: You are she who persuaded him whom the devil was not valiant enough to attack. You destroyed so easily God’s image, man. On account of your desert, even the Son of God had to die.”
Source: (The Gospel According to Woman, London: Elm Tree Books, 1986, pp. 52-62. See also Nancy van Vuuren, The Subversion of Women as Practiced by Churches, Witch-Hunters, and Other Sexists Philadelphia: Westminster Press pp.28-30)
“As in all the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak but must be in submission as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.” (I Corinthians 14:34-35)
Unfortunately, we have no record of Jesus ever once calling Mary, Mother.
“And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? My hour is not yet come. His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.” (John 2:1-5)
How beautiful, loving, and intimate it would be to have said to Mary, “mother” instead of just the very disconnected “woman”.
“And your Lord has decreed that you not worship except Him, and to parents, good treatment. Whether one or both of them reach old age while with you, say not to them so much as, “uff,” and do not repel them but speak to them a noble word.” (Qur’an 17:23)
“For you are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as having been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you be Christ’s, then are you Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26-29)
(Now the above passage is simply talking about status in the mystical union Christians have in Christ).
There is still rank in the Earth. Notice the Holy Spirit informs us that women rank below men.
“But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God. (1 Corinthians 11:3)
“Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.” (Ephesians 6:5)
We (believers) shall be like Him (Jesus): All Christians transformed into Sons of God.
“Beloved, now we are now the sons of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.” (1 John 3:2)
“And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”(1 John 3:3)
Prima Qur’an Comments: One thing you will learn very quickly is that this ‘we‘ quickly becomes a reference to men only. Notice it says that ‘we‘ shall be like him. When it says ‘everyone‘ this again is a reference only to men. It says who purifies ‘himself‘ just as he is pure.
What is the proof that the children of God are not daughters but sons? The New Testament is replete with evidence that we will be sons of God.
”Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.” (Ephesians 1:4-5)
He (God) chose ‘us‘ as adoption as sons…not daughters!
“But as many, as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the sons of God, even to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:12-13)
“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the sons of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.” (1 John 3:1)
“For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba”, Father.” (Romans 8:15)
“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” (Romans 8:14)
“Yet the Israelites will be like the sand on the seashore, which cannot be measured or counted. In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called ‘sons of the living God.’” (Hosea 1:10)
Prima Qur’an Comments: Now some may muse that ‘Israelites’ here would be a reference to both men and women. However, it is not women who were created to become the sons of God. Women were simply created for the good pleasure of men.
The New Testament affirms this when it says,
“Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man.” (1 Corinthians 11:9)
“A man is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man.” (1 Corinthians 11:7)
These texts do not really need any comment.
No women in heaven so God’s horny sons had to sleep with earth women.
“And it came to pass when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.” (Genesis 6:1-2)
If there were ‘daughters of God‘ the lusty sons wouldn’t have made a play for Earth women.
In fact, Jesus reinforces this point.
“ For in the resurrection, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.” (Matthew 22:30)
Some people may see a contraction between Matthew and Genesis but there isn’t any.
A There are no females in heaven and that is why the Sons of God went after the daughters of men. They had the courtesy to marry them.
B As humanity as we know it comes to an end the institution of marriage will no longer be around. You will as the angels aka SONS OF GOD.
Everyone in Christ gets transformed into a son of God. Rather you are male or female.
The Bible makes it very clear that Jesus was sent only to save men!
“He came as a witness to testify concerning that light so that through him all men might believe.” (John 1:7)
Paul says quite clearly about who God wants to be saved, and who he sent his Son for, in 1 Tim. 2:4-6:
“Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony to which was borne at the proper time.” (1 Timothy 2:4-6)
“For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe.” (1 Timothy 4:10)
The children of God are never ‘daughters of God‘ they are always ‘sons of God‘.
At the very least in the Qur’an Allah (swt) has acknowledged that people attribute daughters to the divine. In the Bible, not even the faintest whisper of that being a possibility.
“And they attribute to Allah daughters– exalted is He – and for them is what they desire.” (Qur’an 16:57)
“For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him, we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.” (Romans 8:14-19)
Prima Qur’an Comments: All the men will be able to share in the glory of God and Christ. The glory of God and Christ both of whom are masculine presence. In the passage above ‘God’s children‘ and ‘sons of God‘ are used interchangeably. God’s children are his sons. They are never his daughters!
“You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:26)
“This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.” (1 John 3:10)
“Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.” (Revelation 14:1)
“No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they remained virgins(parthenos). They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among mankind and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. (Revelation 14:3-5)
Not one of the 144,000 is a woman! No women are ever mentioned to be in the kingdom of heaven! No women mentioned among those who could learn the song.
In Christianity, as explained above women are created for men, not for the glory of God.
Remember it says “who did not defile themselves with women, for they remained virgins” -This also means sex in marriage. Men are created for heaven as they reflect ultimately the glory of God. Women however only reflect the glory of the men as the Bible tells us.
We are told these 144,000 virgin men are offered as ‘first fruits‘ to God and his Lamb. I don’t know about you but that sounds a little fruity to me.
“A man is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man.” (1 Corinthians 11:7)
There you have it, folks! Jesus was sent to save the men. Those men who accept Jesus will be accepted as God’s sons. They will become the sons of God.
Some modern translations of the Bible have tried to say ‘children of God’ or they even have gender-sensitive Bibles now! They do this to cover up the facts and the truth.
Christianity does not have heaven for women! In Christianity, the ideal scenario is virgin men in mystical union with (The Son (masculine), The Father (masculine), and the Holy Spirit (masculine).
This is unlike heaven as Allah mentioned in the Qur’an. It is for everyone. Men and women!
Notice the ambiguous nature in the New Testament as to the salvation and status of women in the hereafter and contrast that with the very crystal clear teachings of the Qur’an!
“Women shall derive benefit from what they acquired. Ask, therefore, God out of His bounty: behold, God has indeed full knowledge of everything.” (Qur’an 4:32)
“And whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while being a believer – those will enter Paradise and will not be wronged, even as much as the speck on a date seed.” (Qur’an 4:124)
The Christians wish to God they had a verse like this.
Prima Qur’an Conclusion:
The Christian heaven is not a place for women. There is no expression of eternal feminine love within the ‘godhead’. If anything a woman (who sheds the flesh) is changed into a ‘son of God‘ so that “she” now ‘he‘ as a ‘son of God‘ can enjoy fellowship as the bridegroom of Christ.
Where as in Islam the text are very clear that women will be among those who partake in heaven.
If one had to ask which text (The New Testament) or the (Qur’an) is unambiguous and very clear about women being in paradise the Qur’an wins this hands down.
“Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward in the Hereafter according to the best of what they used to do.”(Qur’an 16:97)
“And their Lord responded to them,“Never will I allow to be lost the work of [any] worker among you, whether male or female; you are of one another. So those who emigrated or were evicted from their homes or were harmed in My cause or fought or were killed – I will surely remove from them their misdeeds,and I will surely admit them to gardens beneath which rivers flow as reward from Allah, and Allah has with Him the best reward.” (Qur’an 3: 195)
Allahu Akbar! Allah is the greatest!
To the women reading this. We invite you to Islam!
You are all most welcome!
Prima Quran 